The National Junior Disabilities Championships (NJDC) were held in Chicago July 17-24. The NJDC provide an opportunity for more than 300 top young athletes age 7-21 from around the country to compete for medals in seven athletic events during the eight days of the games. What makes this event special is that all of these athletes have significant physical or visual disabilities, such as spinal cord injuries, cerebral palsy, amputations and blindness.

Five Rockford-area athletes set records and/or placed in the National Junior Disabilities Championships. The Team Rockford athletes and their accomplishments are as follows:

Jacob Gregor placed second in the discus and first in the shot put for his classification.

Nikki McGee set the national record in both the 100- and 200-meter dash in her classification.

Cameron Poole took first place in the 25-meter breaststroke and set a national record for his classification. He took first place in the 25-meter freestyle and set a national record for his classification. He took first place in the 50-meter freestyle and set a national record for his classification. And he took second place in the 50-meter backstroke and second place in the 25-meter backstroke.

Juan Rocha placed fourth in the discus and third in the shot put for his classification.

Adonis White placed first in the discus and first in the shot put for his classification.

On behalf of The Rock River Times, congratulations to all of the Team Rockford athletes!